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Dwarf74 posted:The third is Inherent Bonuses. These are more a quality-of-life adjustment than an outright fix, but once you use them you'll never go back. So you might have gathered that 4e is mathematically pretty rigorous. It assumes you have certain magic item bonuses at certain levels for its math to work out right. Inherent bonuses cut through the micromanagement this would normally require and says, "Well... why don't we just give you those bonuses, then?" I actually had the DM of one of my current games "go back" on using inherent bonuses, because apparently he is the alpha grog and thinks having to loot for our math is more fun than having to loot for interesting properties/item powers. And this from the guy who said 4e magic items are dull and he wanted to make up his own for us. Edit: BatteredFeltFedora posted:Regarding Feat Taxes: If a DM wanted to fix the problem on their side of the screen by changing monster math on top of the MM3 fixes, what would be involved there? Basically, how off does the math get? Would a generic "Tier bonus" to defenses and attacks do it? If you combine Inherent/magic item bonuses with expertise feats, the bonuses should basically be like +3 per tier. So you could scale back monster math at the same rate; it complicates the Math on a Card formula a bit though. Alternatively, you can go DTAS and have your PCs just use monster math for combat statistics. P.d0t fucked around with this message at 09:06 on Jan 29, 2014 |
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Jan 29, 2014 08:57
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Party Boat posted:I remember the soldier monster role being unpopular with goons many threads ago, was it just because they have high defenses / low damage and are therefore the opposite of fun monster design? Did the MM3 balance tweaks do much to address it? I think the actual problem is that most of them don't come with a mark punishment. Even in Monster Vault, not all of them have one. Just make sure your soldiers have this, rip-off/homebrew from other monsters if need be. Fixing low damage is easy enough, if that bugs you. People talk about MM3 math all the time, and seriously use that poo poo for everything; crib interesting powers from whatever monster manual/published adventure you like, and reskin everything.
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Jan 30, 2014 02:28
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Hubis posted:My preference would be to ditch marking wherever possible, and replace it with a reaction/aura power of some sort. Marking sucks because it's just another thing you have to keep track of (also it makes very little sense on the table, so it's really hard to explain to people sometimes). You mean like Defender Aura?  Some monsters actually have that, but again most don't have a mark punishment. IMHO keeping track of marking isn't any harder than keeping track of whether or not Monster #126B has used their immediate action this turn or not. So just be lazy and make them opportunity actions  Marking might not make simulationist sense, but it makes game sense.
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Jan 30, 2014 08:22
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Party Boat posted:Has anyone come across a more elegant 4e character sheet that minimises repeated info and emphasises the essential stuff? In the past I've ripped off the awesome single sheet layout that Ettin made but they're pretty time-consuming to prepare. The advantage is you can be smart about what does and doesn't need to be on a sheet, including rolling similar powers into a single entry that ends with "choose this effect or that one". On this note, I wish skill bonuses from items and stuff added to all skills keying off a particular ability score. That, and making it so your lowest ability scores were both 10s all the time instead of an 8 and a 10 would allow the skills section of the character sheet to be condensed a lot.
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Feb 1, 2014 17:42
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Rexides posted:So yeah, I feel that the little hack I did didn't work out so great, it was way too swingy. I think I'll just introduce a couple companion characters with simple abilities, and retire them when I get more players in the group. When you do, make sure to emphasize the fact that they retire undefeated.
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Feb 4, 2014 04:56
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A notable difference might be the way movement works, specifically Move being an action rather than "how much I can move during my turn, possibly doing other poo poo in the middle" Also, 5ft step aka shift 1 is a move action.
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Feb 7, 2014 01:22
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Rexides posted:I am toying with the idea of static monster attacks and active player defenses. Basically, the monster's attack becomes a DC 10 + attack bonus, and the players get defense rolls which are the defenses - 10 + 1d20. That way they have to actively try to block/dodge/resist the attacks while I am just standing there spouting numbers like an rear end in a top hat accountant. Has anyone tried something like that? What I've taken to doing when I DM is having monster attack rolls as 1d20+1d8+monster level. That way you'd have fewer numbers to spout, since monster level should rarely be higher than party level+2.
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Feb 7, 2014 18:55
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How do goons around here feel about Superior Implement training? Does it basically qualify as a feat tax?
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Feb 8, 2014 19:20
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My Lovely Horse posted:One of my players has made a paladin with STR and CHA 12 and CON and WIS 18. His reasoning is that he doesn't care so much about hitting as about soaking up damage and being able to Lay On Hands, and he's planning to take mainly powers with effects. I've actually thought of doing some similar things; Essentials leaders have "Effect: "lines on all their attack powers, so you could pump DEX and play your Sentinel/Warpriest as an archer (however suboptimal that is). Changing your primary attack stat in spite of your class opens up your race options, if nothing else. Skalds have a similar (read: better) sort of flexibility because everything they do keys off of basic attacks, and they can use STR or CHA for MBAs (paladins for some reason don't get this, even in essentials). Those ideas are more for when you're the last player in the party to make their character, and it turns out you need ranged attacks and/or DEX skills and a healer. What I actually want to try is building/playing a Blackguard as an archer.
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Feb 9, 2014 19:50
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thespaceinvader posted:Archer Blackguard works (for a given value thereof) because their encounter power and class features don't have to be melee. Doing the same with an e-leader other than the Skald will just result in you not having viable encounter or daily powers and being terrible. Yup. But I was just following from the quoted player's mentality of "I only care about effects." Damage is king, dead monsters get no actions, etc. On that line of thought, it bugs the crap out of me that they made e-leaders WIS/CON. And their class skill lists suck; that's nothing new for 4e, but Cavaliers actually saw the paladin list un-shitted up a bit so 
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Feb 9, 2014 20:04
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Here's a stupid edge-case question: Are there any good reasons to pick Half-Elf Past Life as a Revenant? You don't get a Dilletante power, so Versatile Master is basically useless. You can't take Human or Elf feats. Are there racial paragon paths worth considering?
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Feb 9, 2014 22:04
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So here's some cheese I noticed while I was looking through Heroes of the Feywild. Skalds can use their CHA for MBAs with one-handed weapons. This possibly includes using versatile weapons two-handed. Two-Handed Weapon Expertise gives bonuses when using two-handed weapons, but presumably doesn't work when using versatile weapons two-handed. I think I'm about as much of a degenerate char-opper as one can be without an Insider subscription. 
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Feb 10, 2014 10:35
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InsomniacTurtle posted:With drawing dungeons, do I draw the entire thing out at once, or is it a room by room kind of things? Generally room by room. I have a pretty small chessex mat (20"x22"?) and every "encounter room" usually takes up the whole thing. Do the NES Zelda thing and have each room in a dungeon be the same shape, just change where the possible exits are; that's basically what our DM is doing currently.
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Feb 10, 2014 19:49
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The throne room map from Cairn of the Winter King has seen multiple uses in my campaigns.
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Feb 10, 2014 22:28
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Rexides posted:I think the only lowish level monster that I really prefer the new version of is definitely the orc. Free attack at it's death throes is light years more interesting than spending a healing surge, which is basically just more HP. For the record, though, the orc leader-type from MM1 grants his allies the same sort of death-throe ability within a certain area. The Warrior's Surge thing is one I think would be good for 2-hit monsters.
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Feb 12, 2014 11:25
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Rexides posted:Can we expand that to have a new track of non-combat feat slots on levels you don't get a normal feat were you get to pick a non-combat one? Things like rituals, skill training/focus feats, stuff like that? Sort of how the game already silos powers into attack and utility (although utility powers do have combat applications). Has anyone tried something like that? My groups give bonus noncombat feats (or limited to skill training) at either 5/9/15.. or 4/8/14.. Me experience is it can get a little nutty I'd you have a stealth-focused party and 4/5 party members have skill focus in it. That might have more to do with me always homebrewing monsters and not liking having to come up with Perception scores or playing the stealth mini-game.
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Feb 14, 2014 20:12
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I did a quick sample from the Monster Vault, and I think you're trippin' out.
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Feb 15, 2014 23:37
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dwarf74 posted:Your monsters should do somewhere around 2d6+level or 2d8+level damage for normal monsters. Brutes, up it by 25%. AoE effects, drop it by 25%. The way I run it is something like this: Attack: level + 1d8 + 1d20 Damage: level + 1d6 + 1d10 (add 1d6+1d10 and subtract 10, per tier) Brutes/encounter powers: add the d8 roll * tier to the damage.
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Feb 16, 2014 06:29
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I was tinkering around with the Character Builder at my buddy's place yesterday, and I couldn't figure out how to change my paladin's Lay on Hands to Ardent Vow. Am I just a moron?
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Feb 16, 2014 23:20
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Look at classes that have effects on every power. Warpriest and Sentinel come to mind, although they're melee-focused, just dump your primary stat and never hit anything again. Edit: or a lazylord
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Feb 19, 2014 08:39
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Consider using stun grenades that blind, deafen, or both (basically, say, Area Burst 1 within 5ish) Particularly if you want to play the stealth game, it can make her harder to target; you can't point out where the enemy is if your ally can't see or hear you. Don't be too much of a dick, but play it tactical.
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Feb 25, 2014 03:25
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Try using more minions, or two-hit monsters.
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Feb 25, 2014 20:43
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Rexides posted:Has anyone tried to import the fail forward mechanics (or succeed with complications) of Dungeon World in 4E? The discussion we are currently having about skill checks in the Next thread got me thinking about it, but I am more interested about using it in combat rolls. In my current campaign I currently have just few players so a missed roll is not just a huge thing since that player will get another turn soon, but we are probably gonna get another two this weekend and I don't want to see sad faces in my table. If you want to kludge something together, you could roll before declaring what power you're using; a hit means you hit with an encounter or daily power, a miss means you hit with an at-will power (or miss with an encounter/daily that has an Effect or Miss line, your choice). As usual, Essentials classes would complicate the picture.
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Mar 4, 2014 19:22
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djw175 posted:Because crossbows are literally the worst weapon. No other item in the game takes so long to reload. Repeating Crossbow  I used one on my Ranger|Rogue hybrid in heroic; hurray for having Ranger weapon proficiencies with Sneak Attack from across the map because gently caress burning a feat for Prime Shot.
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Mar 7, 2014 00:17
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 Load:minor doesn't play well with Quarry sometimes. Anecdotal, but I never ended up having to reload in combat. loving errata, ruining my life though; I didn't even know of that one.
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Mar 7, 2014 01:22
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The Belgian posted:I as DM nearly killed the entire party in the first encounter of the slaying stone against some wolves. Rolled 4 crits and only 1 miss. At the end there was one guy standing with less than 10 HP. Get a shittier d20.
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Mar 9, 2014 08:44
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My Lovely Horse posted:My PCs keep dropping, too. We're two sessions in and I don't think there's one among them who hasn't been below 0 HP yet. Worst example from last session was the invoker going down twice in one battle, along with the paladin, but as far as I'm concerned it just goes to show you don't let an artillery stand around at 4 HP for two rounds, and also, when your party is striker-heavy, you go in guns blazing rather than hold a defense position. Running heavy on ranged monsters in a melee party can be a tough slog on the players, particularly if you throw in minions without a controller in the party.
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Mar 10, 2014 05:46
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Drake_263 posted:My party composition is going to be INTERESTING - one of the players I had considered dropping out so I persuaded a different friend to play.. and then the player who was waffling decided to join, after all, so now I have six players. As all roles in the party were already filltryed (two strikers, one of each other) I told her to pick anything she wanted in the PHB.. and she went with a second wizard. Looks like I'm going to be loading up on minions for most fights! Try some 2-hit monsters.
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Mar 11, 2014 19:47
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Couple questions: Would you rather play in a game that is limited (including feats & equipment) to: a) PHB1 b) HoFL & HoFK Secondly, how did 4e Encounters work? Was it pregens only, or were there criteria/limitations for building your own? If so, what were they?
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Mar 19, 2014 04:24
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Klungar posted:I think it was "suggested" that your characters be built with the latest handbook that had come out, or stay in Essentials once those came out, but I never had any issue bringing in whatever character I wanted, as long as it was character builder legal, and it's not like the DM was checking anyway. I forgot to ask, how did character levels work? And wealth/item levels? Like, what levels did the GM plan around/did the characters show up at? If you showed up with a level 3 toon and everyone else was level 9, did you just level up your Dude to the rest of the party and run with it? I ask because my 3.5 DM is running a pretty strict Living Greyhawk home game and if you make a new toon it's back to level 2 for you, sucker.
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Mar 19, 2014 04:46
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PeterWeller posted:I would prefer the Essentials books. I like the E-druid and prefer the builds for the other classes. I do, however, wish they had warlords, or at least bards. Warlords + basic attack classes would own. I don't get how Warlocks got the essentials treatment over some other classes.
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Mar 19, 2014 06:48
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Any suggestions for modules to run as a one-shot, or good rules of thumb for homebrewing one? I have like 3+ players who are always like "I can do a big, long (i.e. 8 hours) boardgame day or a one-shot sometime but can't commit to a campaign." So eventually I might get off my rear end and attempt to do that.
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Mar 24, 2014 03:48
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So when you have a stance or whatever that does [W] damage to enemies when they XYZ, does it add all your usual weapon modifiers, just not your ability mod? Our party Fighter has one of these and apparently the online builder indicates that this is how it works, but it seems sorta.. Unintended? Like at first glance I thought it would just deal the dice roll as damage.
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Mar 27, 2014 04:38
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thespaceinvader posted:Oh yeah, my Half-Elf Ranger: all of his flavour is based on the fact that his dilettante is Biting Swarm. He has been plagued by a swarm of primal fly spirits since his youngest days. They're mostly immaterial, they disappear if you swat them, but over the years he's learned to control and utilise them - he does a lot of penalties to hit, slowing and immobilising, some forced movement, all of which are flavoured as clouds of horrible biting insects plaguing the target. Naw, dude, this basically sounds like Pigpen from Peanuts comics.
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Apr 2, 2014 01:43
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Dumb question: when you crit with a High Crit weapon, are the extra [W]s maxed or rolled?
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Apr 6, 2014 22:14
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The Leper Colon V posted:This also works. It depends how fun "downtime" is.
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Apr 12, 2014 03:57
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So, I have basically no experience with spellcasting classes. Are there any sort of class-independent builds for them, in the vein of Frostcheese or Charge-Kits for melee classes? I assume there is Dilettante bullshit for casters too, right? Like, poach an at-will that counts as RBA and such.
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Apr 12, 2014 04:54
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The Leper Colon V posted:Spellcasting isn't as complicated as you'd think, since it's really just power selection like everyone else. Are there particular damage types or conditions that are better "supported" than others? I've heard about degenerate bullshit like Radiant Dragonbreath spamming, but I don't know much about any Radiant Mafia builds. e: I'm actually playing a Psychic Lock bard right now and it's hilarious because our DM thinks making us fight solos is the way to challenge the party. P.d0t fucked around with this message at 05:34 on Apr 12, 2014 |
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Apr 12, 2014 05:32
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In terms of building your own monsters, are there generally-accepted guidelines for conditions/status effect powers targetting particular defenses? Like, push or prone mostly targets Fort, slide and dominate are Will.. Others?
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Apr 14, 2014 02:24
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OneThousandMonkeys posted:You find psychic powers that damage an enemy's ability to hit (of which there are many), and stack Psychic Lock, and suddenly you are locking down a monster with at-wills. -2/-4 to hit (combined with fighter marks, etc.) is one of the most powerful things you can do, because more than simply denying actions, you're making a monster waste powers completely. Vicious Mockery and Foolhardy Fighting say "hello"
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Apr 14, 2014 05:16
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